Talks about the mysterious collapse of past civilizations - and what this means for the future. Bringing together evidence from many sources and piecing together the myriad influences, from climate to culture, that make societies self-destruct, this book shows how unlike our ancestors we can benefit from our knowledge of the past.

Some central questions in the natural and social sciences can't be answered by controlled laboratory experiments. This title consists of eight comparative studies drawn from history, archeology, economics, economic history, geography, and political science that cover a spectrum of approaches, ranging from a non-quantitative narrative style.

.

Why do humans differ in sexuality from close animal relatives and ancestors? Jared Diamond explores the evolutionary forces that gave shape to human sexual distinctions and shows how they contributed to what it means to be uniquely human.